I am linking up with World Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes
I wish all my USA readers a safe and very HAPPY 4th of JULY!!
The weekends seem to be flying by, just like the birds. Just a few weeks ago hubby and I decided to take a Sunday drive on the back roads of Carroll County, Maryland. Following the lead of many Maryland birders before me... I headed out to see my first Dickcissel.
From the backside one would think this is your usual little brown bird. The adult male has a gray crown and nape contrast with yellow washed supercilium ( I still call them yellow eyebrows). It also has a black throat stripe and a yellow breast which is actually beautiful. Of course when he turned around my camera wasn't ready for a shot. But, I did get to see the front of this beautiful Dickcissel. He was posing nicely... right were he was suppose to be, at least the last reported sighting. You should really check out Wikipedia's Dickcissel so you can see how pretty he really is.
He would repeatedly fly down to the ground I guess to catch a bug and then fly back to sign for awhile. I watch for a few minutes until a truck drove down the road behind me. So, I drove to the end of the road so I could turn around to go back to see the Dickcissel. Another bird caught my attention on another sign at the other end of the road. I thought maybe I was looking at a female Dickcissel so I took a few photos before driving back to the original Dickcissel.
I posted my bird or what I thought was my female Dickcissel on my facebook page so members of my bird club could see.. when they informed my second bird was a Grasshopper Sparrow. The Grasshopper Sparrow has a pale white central crown stripe, yellow lores, white eye ring, heavy bill and a chunky body. Cool..lifer number two..I was happy with my sightings, my next back road bird will be a Bobolink maybe during the fall migration?
And here is the street where they live...
So, to my delight I got two lifers on one street. The Dickcissel and the Grasshopper Sparrow. So believe me when I say it pays to ride the back roads. You never know what you might see...Happy Birding!!!
To see more beautiful birds check out Springman's World Bird Wednesday and for more nature scenes please visit Michelle's Nature Notes. Thanks to Springman for hosting World Bird Wednesday and to Michelle for hosting Nature Notes. I also thank you for stopping by to see my world birds. Happy Birding and have Happy 4th of July!!
I wish all my USA readers a safe and very HAPPY 4th of JULY!!
The weekends seem to be flying by, just like the birds. Just a few weeks ago hubby and I decided to take a Sunday drive on the back roads of Carroll County, Maryland. Following the lead of many Maryland birders before me... I headed out to see my first Dickcissel.
From the backside one would think this is your usual little brown bird. The adult male has a gray crown and nape contrast with yellow washed supercilium ( I still call them yellow eyebrows). It also has a black throat stripe and a yellow breast which is actually beautiful. Of course when he turned around my camera wasn't ready for a shot. But, I did get to see the front of this beautiful Dickcissel. He was posing nicely... right were he was suppose to be, at least the last reported sighting. You should really check out Wikipedia's Dickcissel so you can see how pretty he really is.
He would repeatedly fly down to the ground I guess to catch a bug and then fly back to sign for awhile. I watch for a few minutes until a truck drove down the road behind me. So, I drove to the end of the road so I could turn around to go back to see the Dickcissel. Another bird caught my attention on another sign at the other end of the road. I thought maybe I was looking at a female Dickcissel so I took a few photos before driving back to the original Dickcissel.
So, to my delight I got two lifers on one street. The Dickcissel and the Grasshopper Sparrow. So believe me when I say it pays to ride the back roads. You never know what you might see...Happy Birding!!!
To see more beautiful birds check out Springman's World Bird Wednesday and for more nature scenes please visit Michelle's Nature Notes. Thanks to Springman for hosting World Bird Wednesday and to Michelle for hosting Nature Notes. I also thank you for stopping by to see my world birds. Happy Birding and have Happy 4th of July!!
47 comments:
That must have been an exciting day! I frequently hear the birds, but have great difficulty finding them if they are in the trees! Great shots of both of your birds today!
Thanks for the Grasshopper Sparrow, I've never seen one.
Hi there - very nice birds - two lifers in a day - what a treat.
Circus OZ do tour in the US, but there next set of dates don’t seem to include MD. If they won’t come to you, you could always go to them!
Cheers - Stewart M - Australia
back roads are the best...especially when they aren't as traveled as the main ones.
we like to get lost! ha!
congrats on your TWO lifers!
two in one day!! your pictures are great. what cute little birds.
to me...i would have thought those birds were the same. sometimes it's hard for me to notice the little differences!
have a safe & happy 4th!
Well done! I love reaching out when I can't ID a bird. People can be so helpful. I'd never seen a warbler or vireo until this spring.
Greetings from Cottage Country!
I think he's a handsome bird when you see him close up. I love the rust color on the wing and the little yellow eye bar. The street you live on is so beautiful, lucky you!
Great pictures you show. Wishing you a great Tuesday :) Hanne Bente
Nice, I bet it's exciting to see a bird you've never seen before. I do like backroads too, you never know what you'll find.
We have so many teachers in the blogsphere.
Congrats, Eileen. Getting one lifer is terrific --but TWO??? That's amazing... Love both of them --and you are right. We need to get back on the back roads of our country more often... No telling what we'll see!!!!!
Hugs,
Betsy
Wow, beautiful photos Eileen.
They are so clear and fresh.
You did a wonderful job taking them as always.
Happy 4th July
x Fiona
What a great birding day you had, you'll no doubt be taking the backroads a lot in the future.
How exciting for you Eileen. I would have been thrilled too. Great shots!
Almost forgot, have a very Happy 4th of July!
WOW! Two lifers at one go! I'm impressed. I have NEVER seen a dickcissel although I have heard they are sometimes seen a little to the south of here. I have also never seen a grasshopper sparrow...or it may be more correct to say I have seen them but didn't know it. I KNOW we have them here. :)
Congrats on your two lifers!
wow two lifers so close together is amazing! Sweet little birds too!
loving those long legs; sweet photos Eilee and lovely countryside
Great sightings!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.
Great photos of the birds and that back road looks a great place to explore.
Beautiful shots!
Happy 4th of July.
Mette
Beautiful pictures! /Susanne :)
Couldnt you just pop into your header image and take a stroll down the stream.....
Lovely
Well done with the lifers, its a great feeling!
Great shots of your two lifers! It's a lovely street where they live.
Congrats!! That's exciting. You do the same thing I do:) I post my pics on facebook first and get feedback before putting them on blogger. I have several extreme birders friends that help me identify more of the nebulous brown and tiny birds:) Sparrows come to mind:) Hope you have a wonderful 4th. Have some yummy food!!! I'm going to try and do some photography:) It's a rainy day tomorrow....so it's play time!
Hi Eileen! I am excited for you..two lifers on one street! That is amazing :) Good captures too, the photos came out really well.
What a lovely street they live on! They both look like sparrows to me - that's about what I know.
I LOVE back road birding! and what a pretty back road that is!
Congrats on the lifers! I hope you get your bobolink!
Great eyesight to spot these little birds. You must be a very patient person. Happy 4th of July to you and your family too!
Great shots of the birds and I love the rural scenery on the back road. I hope you have a happy independence day!
Those back roads sure do yield some magic!
Great captures!
Wonderful that you could add two birds to your lifer list! I love the view along that backroad too. Backroads are my favorite way to travel.
I never heard of a Dickcissel..but that first photo is fantastic.
Two good lifers two great shots - nice one Eileen. Looks like a good road to explore sometime soon. Happy birding for the rest of the week.
I have yet to see one of these in real time, but I still have confidence...it's on my list of 'to find'.
thrilling, thrilling!! you should link that amazing farm/barn to barn charm on monday night. it's gorgeous!!
and yay, i did not have any trouble!!
Today I learnt a new bird name Dickcissel! Good observation on the yellow eyebrows on the tiny bird! Thanks for sharing!
Oh congrats on the lifers...and I always see something here I haven't seen in person..Thank you for linking up and for your good wishes about my daughter's little dog...Michelle
i love that country back-road pic!
Oh my goodness, not one, but two lifers! Congratulations, Eileen! Just a couple of weeks ago I went out searching for my first Dickcissel. Like you, I was able to see one! They are beautiful birds. I was also on the hunt for Bobolinks but didn't find any. Wonderful photographs!
Wishing you and your family a 4th of July filled with delights!
happy 4th of July, Eileen. I am always amazed with your bird photography, you always find so many.
I love riding the back roads and agree, you never know what you might find. Very nice captures!
Two lifers is a great birding day for anyone Eileen. Congrats on the sightings and the wonderful photos of your lifers too! The Dickcissel would be a lifer for me too!
Funny when I saw that first photo of the Dickcissel my first thought was Grasshopper Sparrow. So I understand the mis-ID! Congrats on the new birds!
Wow! What an amazing birding day.... thanks for the information on both birds, neither of which I'd even heard of before. Eyebrow is a lot easier to remember and spell than sup(that other word )!
It must be exciting for a birder to see new birds. I'm glad you had difficulty identifying the second bird because I don't feel so bad now when I cannot decide which bird I'm looking at from the book.
I'm jealous of your Grasshopper Sparrow photo. For the past six years I have seen them every spring and summer in a prairie near our second home in Illinois, sometimes up to a dozen. For some reason, I have not seen a single one this year!
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